lopez-mantaras



Jan. 7, 1930. L. LOPEZ-MANTARAS 1,742,551

ADAPTATION OF DIFFERENT MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS BEING PLAYED WITH PIANOLAS SIMULTANEOUSLY Filed Feb. 1, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 //7 ventor [m1 17mm; v

' flitonwsrs Jan. 7, 1930. LQPEZ-MANTARA$ 1,742,551

ADAPTATION OF DIFFERENTMUSICAL INSTRUMENTS BEING PLAYED WITH PIANOLAS SIMUIJTANEOUSLY Filed Feb. 1, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 /n ventor:

ADAPTATION OF DIFFERENT MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS BEING PLAYED WITH PIANOLAS SIMULTANEOUSLY Filed Feb. 1, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Jafi. 7, 1930. L. LOPEZ-MANTARAS ,5

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[Mi/YWM Jan. 7, 1930. L. LOPEZ-MANTARAS ADAPTATION OF DIFFERENT MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS BEING PLAYED WITH PIANOLAS SIMULTANEOUSLY Filed Feb. 1, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 A /n vemor: [moi/7011mm;

flffonieys I Patented Jan. 7, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE LUCIO LOP EZ-MANTARAS, OF MADRID, SPAIN, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALE TO SOCIEDA'D ANONIMA ERA, OF MADRID, SPAIN, A SOCIETY OF SPAIN ADAPTATION OF DIFFERENT MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS BEING PLAYED WITH PIANOLAS SIMULTANEOUSLY Application filed February 1, 1927, Serial No. 165,174, and in Spain July 5, 1926.

This invention relates to improvements'in automaticmusical instruments of the pneumatically operated type in which means are provided for enabling additional musical in- 5 'struments to be played simultaneously with said firstnamed musical instruments.

Various types of automatic musical instruments are known which can be used to play the piano with an organ or any other musieal instruments simultaneously; however in all of them the adaptation of the extra instruments to the automatic musical instrument is complicated and expensive, and must of necessity be carried out by the maker of the automatic instrument or by persons closely conversant with the mechanism. a

It has already been proposed to employ a construction whereby a number of percussive instruments (drum, triangle, cymbal, castanets) may be played automatically and simultaneously with a pneumatically operated automatic piano. In such construction it was proposed to utilize the same tracker bar with the holes controlling the auxiliary instruments displaced if desired. From these holes tubes were led in a conduit to a connecting socket on the assembly of auxiliary instru- 'ments, and thence to the diaphragms and valves operating the striking pneumatics of the auxiliary instruments.

The object of the present invention is to render possible the application of one or several additional instruments to any pneumatically operated automatic piano whatsoever which can be played by any one in a simple and expeditious way without affecting the mechanism of the automatic piano, and also to render it possible in the same way to uncouple said instruments, leaving the automatic piano exactly as it was before.

The invention consists in a device for adapting additional musical instruments to be played simultaneously with a pneumaticall 0 erated automatic iano com risin an additional detachable tracker bar co-opcrating with an additional set of note perforations on the music sheet, an additional suction system including an additional blower co-operating with the additional tracker bar, a branch pipe connecting said additional sud tion system to the mainsuction system of the piano, and a connecting member for the pipes coming from the additional tracker bar, which member is provided with bleed orifices, all the additional members forming with the auxiliary instruments a complete unit separate from the automatic piano and constituting a mechanism which is to be coupled to the automatic piano when the additional instruments comprised therein are to be played.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a front view of the auxiliary apparatus with several instruments adapted to an automatic piano;

Figure 2 shows a front View of said apparatus;

Figure 3 is a side view of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a detail view of the additional tracker bar and a part ofthe roll, showing the two sections into which it is divided;

Figure 5 shows a section of Figure 4 through the additional tracker bar;

Figure 6 is a combined elevation, the upper portion showing the inner face of one air release member, and the lower portion the inner face of the associated member;

Figure 7 is a central, horizontal section of the assembled members;

Figure 8 is a similar view at a right angle to Figure 7;

Figure 9 is a section through the body of the drum which forms one of the additional instruments, and

Figure 10 shows, by way of example, a constructional form of a valve and bellows or pneumatic from which the particular disposition of an air release orifice or bleed can be seen.

Figure 1 shows an ordinary automatic piano, and indicates by dotted lines the boxes containng the automatic mechanism similar to that of such pianos, the u per box A being the valve box and the lower box B containing the blowing pneumatics. The piano is provided with the normal tracker bar 0, having apertures Y, supported beneath the partition T, and having pneumatic connections R and S of the usual character.

In the tube 0 uniting these two boxes a ratus are also indicated in dotted lines its valve box F and in full lines the tubes E, H, I, that establish the communication from the boxes A and-B of the piano to the'apparatus F and the suction apparatus J. 'This"suc-- tion apparatus J is constituted by a setofbellows operated byan electric 'niotor K or 'by any other motor, and produces a vacuum sufratus and thejpiano if desired. On moving the pedals of thepia'no, the latter will start playing and through the'mediuniof the tubes D, E,-H,'the vacuum will befc aused to operate on the valve box- F of the apparatus, in which there willalways'be the's'a'me pressure as in the box A of the piano.

i If the motor K is started upfthe suction apparatus'J willprodu'ee a vacuum which will be'coinmuniCated through the medium of the tubes I,- E, D, to the boxes AQB, of the piano,'and throagh-L'H, to the box Fof the instrument,and will thus e'ause'both tofunction simultanenously. The 'twoplaying operations are independent of one another and can take place at the same time in orderto strengthen the sound. Figure 1 shows also the location of the additional tracker bar Q,

which is shown in'detail in Figures 4 and 5,

and the connecting conduit L which consists oi atube that contains others of less diameter, and in fact as many as there are valves or pneumatics' on the second instrument.

This conduit L can pass between the top of the piano and the side when its installment is temporary. "Both the said conduit and the suction tube E can, if desired, be permanently fixed by attachment to the wall of the piano. The tube 0 serves to actuate an automatic intube E which connects the second instrument with the vacuum boxes oft'he piano is shut off, it will only be necessary to put the supplementary tracker barin position'in order to enable the apparatus to operate completely independently of, the piano, the vacuum being in this case adjusted accordingly on thesuctlon apparatus J.

The coupled instrument shown" in Figure 2 is constituted by severalore'hestral instru- I mentswhichare similar to the instruments used inthe so-called-iazz-band 'and'the particulardisposition "of which can be seen in the saiddrawing. I

The body'of drum 1'c'oi1tains'the complete pneumaticmechanism 101 the apparatus constituted by abox of valves and as 'many actuating neumatics" as the instrument has hammers or strikers, together with one extra pneumatic which acts on the lever 2 of the dampers, these latter acting on the cymbal 3 and the drum and on the tambour 6 or side drum. The pneumatic mechanism may also contain one or several bellows adapted in known manner to vary the distance or strength of percussion'ot the hammers.

The"instruments constituting the mechanism are: The drum 1, the tambour 6, the cymbal 3, thetrianglefi, and atablet of tap box 7 with two hammers 9; 10 is the striker of the drum; 11 are the drumsticks for the si'de di'um; 12is the striker of the triangle;

I v q i 13 that vofthe cymbal; 1 1 is a supporting 'ficient for the workingE'of the auxilary. appapiece serving to fix the cymbal to the rim of the. drum; is a stop member wh ch prevents excessivemovement of the triangle; 16 1s a nut for. adjusting the height of the triangle;

17 are the'supporting pieces of the drum members which constitute the support or pedestal of the apparatus Figure 4 is a View of the additional tracker bar and'itsflposition in an automatic piano.

Theprincipal part is the piece L formed by a small plate provided with as many holes V as there are 'penumatics on theaccessory instrument. Its'form 1S such, that the perforated roll of paper is perfectly adapted to its surface as well 'as'to' that of the tracker bar of the piano. The member M is a celluloidiilm or other flexible resistant member I which isadapted to fit the'tracker'bar ot the piano accurately, covering as many holes of thisas the additionaltracker bar has, with the object of preventingthe piano from playing the notes corresponding to the sounds of the accessory instruments. This cutofl' M is v mounted on a pivot 'N" which permits of its terrupter P, when the end of the roll is reached, if an electricmotor is used. If the all thenotes of the piano operative. The additiona-l tracker bar is maintained in its place by meansof a bar which has on one of its ends a piece B which by means of'the nut C can be displaced on the bar A so as to vary the length formedby the said bar A and the 3 "piece B and thus adapt it to thepiano, no

matter whatthe distance may be between the; partition walls ofthe roll carrier apparatus.

'On the other end of the bar A, there is a piece E to which is fastened the plate of the additional trackerbarby means the bridge F this piece E being displaceable 'on the bar 'bymeans of the nut D, so that theapertu'res V" of thead'ditional tracker bar'can be made to coincideexactly with the perforations of the music roll. The spring G maintains the piece E resting against the nut D.

The bar A also carries on its end two pieces H which rest on the supporting pins 1' of the music roll J, thus retaining the additional tracker bar in a convenient working position. The small tubes corresponding to the holes of the additional tracker bar are enclosed in a'common protecting conduit L passing through the case of the piano. It is only necessary to loosen the nut C a little, in order to free the whole combination of the additional tracker bar so that it can be separated from the automatic piano, thus leaving the latter in its normal condition. Figure 5 is a vertical section of Figure 4 showing some of the details more clearly.

In Figure 4 it may also be observed that the distance existing between the holes V of the additional tracker bar and the apertures Y of the piano is exactly equal to the distance 0 maintained between two lines of notes at and w one of the piano and the other of the accessory instrument which notes are both to be sounded simultaneously. This distance remains constant in the perforation of the two sections of the roll, viz section A for the notes of the piano and section B for those of the instruments.

Figures 6, 7, 8, and 9 represent the device which renders it possible to separate and unite again with facility the suction tubes of the pneumatic valves of the instrument and at the same time permit access to the small air release or bleed orifices, without the necessity of dismounting any part of the instrument.

The general disposition may be seen from Figure 9, representing a section of the principal parts of the second instrument with the valve box open.

The device proper is formed by the three members a, Z) and 0-61 is a member to which the tubes leading from the automatic piano to the said second instrument are joined, I) is a thin metallic member lined with a membrane which assures perfect closure by the two surfaces when the three members are united in any known manner by the application of slight external pressure, 0 is a small member similar to a which is permanently connected to the second instrument and receives the ends of the tubes 8 of the valves coming from the interior of the second in strument.

The intermediate member I) (Figure 8) has as many conduits (Z (Figure 6) passing through it as the instrument has valves and also other smaller holes e that constitute the air release or bleed orifices of said valves. These small holes communicate on one side with grooves f (Figure 7) formed in the body of the member a and on the other side with a groove h in the member 0. This groove is in communication with the vacuum box or body 2' through the medium of the tube j, Figure 9; in this way the communication between the valve conduits d and the vacuum box through the groves f, the apertures e and the groove h, Figure 10, remains established.

The said Figure 10 shows a constructional form of valve and striking bellows or pneumatic in which the position and the size of the pieces have been drawn somewhat out of pro portion for greater clearness; 7c is any one of the pneumatics that work the instrument; Z is the valve that, putting the pneumatic in communication by m with the exterior or by a with the vacuum box i sets in action said pneumatic. The valve Z is operated by the elastic membrane 0 that separates the vacuum box 2' from the recess p. This recess is in communication with the corresponding hole of the additional tracker bar through the tube d; and when the hole of the additional 35 tracker bar is uncovered by the passage of perforation in the music roll, the membrane 0 acts on the valve Z. When once the perforation has passed and the holes of the tracker bar are covered again, the membrane 0 returns to its original position with regard to the recess 39 owing to the action of the small air release orifice e which communicates with the vacuum box.

In order that the change of pressure before mentioned in the interior of the recess ;0 be sufficiently rapid forthe proper working of the valve, it is necessary that the size of the orifice 6 should be very accurately adjusted with regard to that of the tracker bar. The j said orifice 6 being very small, must therefore always be kept perfectly clean. The above described device renders it possible to gain access readily to the member 0 for the purpose of cleaning the orifice e or of renewing said 1.05 member.

What is claimed is 2- 1. A supplementary playing instrument adapted to cooperate with the note sheet and normal tracker barof a pneumatically operj ated piano, including an additional musical instrument having an actuating member, a pneumatic control forsaid member, and an additional tracker bar communicating with said control and cooperating with the note;;, sheet of the piano.

2. A supplementary playing instrument adapted to cooperate with the note sheet and normal tracker bar of a pneumatically operated piano, including an additional musicals; instrument having an actuatingmember, a pneumatic control for said member, an additional tracker bar communicating'with said control and cooperating with the note sheet of the piano, and means to cut off from therz. note sheet either the additional tracker bar or the valined portion of the normal tracker 3. A supplementary playing instrument adapted to cooperate with the note sheet and;

pneumatic control for said member, an additional tracker bar communicating with said control and cooperating with'the note sheet of the piano, amo-tor pump'fors'aid pneumatic control, and connections "from "said pump to the 'normatandadditional tracker bars.

5. supplementary playing instrument adapted to cooperatewitli thenote sheet and normal tracker bar of a pneumati'cally oper- I ated piano, including an additional musical instrument having an actuat ng member, a pneuma'tlc' control for said 'meinber,"a11 additional tracker bar communicatingnvith said control and cooperating with the note sheet of the piano, and an air'release intermediate the additional trackenbar and the coupled instrument.

' 6. 'A supplementary playing "instrument adapted tocoo'perate with thenotefjsheet and normal tracker bar of a" pneumatically operated piano, including an additional "musical instrument having an actuating member, a pneumatic control forsaid 1ne'1nber ,"an additional tracker bar communicating with said control and cooperating with the notef js'h'eet of the piano, and anairr'e'leaseintermediate the additional tracker bar and "the coupled instrument comprising opposite recessed members enclosing a plate having'bleed openings '="communicating with the' additional tracker bar and; the coupled instrument.

7. A supplenientary playing instrument adapted tofcooperate with thenote sheet and normal tracker'bar of a pneumatically operated piano, including anadditional-musical I instrument having an actuating member, a

pneumatic" control "for said I member,"and an additlonal tracker bar 'dis'posedto cooperate witlra portion of the note sheet of the piano while the remainder "thereof controls *the piano 'action.

8. A supplementary playing instrument adapted to "cooperate with the notef-sheetand normaltr'a'cker bar'of a pneumatically operatedpiano, including 'an additionalniusical instrument having an" actuating member; a

pneumatic control for said member, an additional" tracker communicating with' said control ma -cooperating with theneter sheet of the piano, means to cut oiffrom'the note sheet either the additional tracker bar or the alined portion 'ofthe normal trackerbar, a motor pumpfor said pneumatic control, connection from said'pump to the normal and additional tracker bars, and an air release intermediate'the additional tracker bar and the coupled instrument,

9. A device for adapting additional musical instruments to'be'played simultaneously with a pneumatically operated automatic piano comprising anadditional detachable tracker bar cooperating with a set of note perforations on the music sheet for the piano,

an additional pneumatic system cooperating with the additional'tracker bar, a-conduitconnectingsaid system to the pneumatic system of the piano, a connecting conduit from the additional tracker bar to the additional musical instrument, and an air release in the last-named conduit provided with bleed openings.

In testnnony whereofhe aflixes his signature. 1 a

V LUCIO LOPEZ-"MANTARAS. 

